standbyme

A bit egotistical...you can also thank the people like me who give up their yearly state income tax refund by donating it to the Wildlife Fund...and all we get out of it is the satisfaction of knowing that we are helping out a little bit.

Is there anything worse than planning a trip to Kings Island weeks in advance...booking a hotel, getting time off from work...only to have Bring A Friend Day thrown at you at the last minute?! It is too late for me to reschedule our trip this weekend...but now I know that Sunday is going to be miserable. I have heard it said that there is no more scarier word in the english language as cancer...and I agree...but surely Bring A Friend Day is pretty close to the top also!

Yeah...and none of this had anything to do with the fact that the park could just make the same generic items for all of the parks instead of having to make something unique for the former Paramount parks...and there is no nostalgia factor for anyone who hasn't ever been to Knott's Berry Farm's halloween event...which I would say is the majority of the people who come to Halloween Haunt. (There's something about discussing Halloween at Kings Island that brings out my worst side.)

At the old campground one of the best sounds in the morning was the horn that signaled that they were testing Topgun...it was always nice to hear that.

Gabe, Thanks once again for doing this. The aerial shots that you take are always some of my favorite Kings Island photos to look at. Your efforts are appreciated. As a side note...is it possible that the clearing behind SOB is (finally) the start of the long missed campground?! (I can only hope.) Thanks again, J.D.

Coudn't have said it better myself! (Maybe they should add a K-Mart Blue-Light Special attraction this year.)

The new look is an improvement...I think the color scheme could be a hair darker, but other than that I like it. As for the avatars being bigger...obviously I like that idea! I think people can be more creative. (Not that I have so far.) By the way, nice avatar Avatar...it's nice to put a face with a name. Also WooferBearATL if you really need help just PM and i'll help you out.

I meant that given the option of sitting through a show of cover-versions or just sitting by the fountain and relaxing I choose the fountain...plus the people walking by can be quite entertaining!

In my entire life of going to Kings Island...way more years than I care to remember, the shows have had only 2 purposes for me: #1. When I was a kid, the shows kept my Dad occupied while EVERYONE else in my family rode rides...even my Mom called him an "old man" because he only liked to sit and watch the shows. #2. If I were doing a park event scavenger hunt and it was required to watch a show in order to get an answer I would reluctantly sit through it. If it weren't for this site I would never know how many shows the park had going on during any given year...I would MUCH rather just sit on the midway and watch the fountain and the people going by than sit through one of the park shows. (Should I add a cough?)

Thanks to everyone for the teaser photos! I will not be able to make it to the park for a few weeks so these are great. It sounds odd, but the thing that impresses me the most is the new Guest Relations office...I always thought that the old one was a terrible way to conduct business. One question...and I think I know the answer, are all of the Forrest Gump photos gone in "Outer Hanks"?

PLEASE don't get my expectations too high...I hate being dissapointed!

I personally think it would be tough for the park to get an accurate statistic of this since the Backward Racer was closed SO very much. (During the weekdays it could have almost been re-named "The Coaster With A Garbage Can In Front Of It's Line"...can't you just picture merchandise with that name.) I know everyone is different, but like many others have stated, the majority of the people I go with prefer the backwards side...I personally don't care, I liked them both.

I have been trying to make sense of these 2 parts of the post: Then there is this near the bottom of the post: Are there 2 different Gold Pass parking lots this year...or is it that a Gold Pass gets you free parking but NOT in the Gold Pass parking area unless you pay extra? (I could not find were the asterisk was in the post.)

But, since the resort has a shuttle bus you don't really have to drive yourself...and where the bus drops you off is a lot shorter walk than from GWL.

The very first thing that popped in mind when I read the e-mail yesterday was: "Well, so much for Cedar Fair ACTUALLY caring about their customers". Whatever happened to "the park KNOWS the BIGGEST problem with Fearfest/Haunted Haunt is that it is too crowded"?! So THIS is their solution? Getting that e-mail was really a kick in the stomach...or maybe a little lower. And before anyone says something like "People complain if it's free or if it's an upcharge they can't win", you can check my posts back 2-3 years and I have always been in favor of an upcharge to keep the crowds at a reasonable level. The thing that irritates me is that the park went out of their way to say Halloween Haunt was not going to be included with season passes and now this...like WooferBearATL said, consistency is not anywhere to be found.

I haven't noticed it mentioned so far...and if so I am sorry...but I would like to know if these boring names will affect sales of souvenier items. A name may not change a ride's "fun quality" BUT I think a name does matter when it comes to deciding if someone wants to buy a t-shirt, who wants a shirt with a "boring" name/logo?

How do you have The Partridge Family episode on DVD...did you just record it yourself?

So, we know we can't discuss politics or religion...but judging by this and past threads the moderators might have to add Halloween to the list!

There are some very nice pictures displayed here. I especially like Gordon Bombay's. It looks almost too good to be "real"! (Not that I am doubting that it is.) That is one problem I have with the new computer/digital era...it kind of takes away from someone who actually has the ability to take a good photo instead of just "creating it" with special effects and airbrushing out any imperfections. Anyway, here is my favorite photo I took at the park...at least one that doesn't have a family member in it. I had my camera accidentally on a wrong setting...and I still don't know which one! I just like how the colors ended up...and it has not been "touched up" at all. And i'll hijack the thread a little. I visited California for the first time this year and one of the main things that I have wanted to see for years is "Ferris Bueller's" house. Even though the movie is set in the Chicago area and most of it was filmed there, his house is actually in Long Beach. The house still looked pretty much the same. There was a tire swing on a tree outside...so whoever lives there must have little kids. The house is not quite in the neighborhood you would expect...there is a pretty run-down house across the street. Merry Christmas!

Nice trip report and VERY nice pictures...some of the best I have ever seen of the fountain at night. I really was impressed with this one: http://fiveninety.dyndns.org/~thegreatzo/p...sIsland/166.jpg What kind of a setting were you using for the night-time ones?

So if you admit that they ARE going through "crap" why is it whining to point it out? Isn't that how things get changed? I think there must be some truth to what is being said by some of the employees, and here is why: I only get to the park for about 4-5 visits a season, but even then I do remember certain employees that I see year to year. This year I didn't see a certain employee and asked another employee where she was, here is what I was told: "Oh, she quit". The employee went on to say that "Cedar Fair has lost a lot of their good employees this year because of how they are treating us". (The employee didn't sound bitter, just sad.) The employee that I asked about was not a kid, and was so good at their job that even I, as an out-of-state 4-5 times a year visitor noticed her. Everytime I read on here that a former Paramount employee has quit I wonder why.

Nevermind

I have not commented or "complained" (as you put it) on the jacket situation...but I guess I will now. I don't think it's fair to criticize people because they are not happy with how the "free" jacket give-away has worked. The criticism should be directed more towards the park. I know things can go wrong, but even 2 of the employees that I talked to in Guest Relations were showing disbelief on how the promotion was being handled. (I was surprised that they would let me, a customer hear them talk amongst themselves on what they truly thought of the promotion.) The "free" jacket is not "free" if you have to spend time & gas money to make a special trip to pick it up...which is definitely the case now that the park is closed for the season. Also, if you are going to say that you can just pick it up in the spring...the same applies. The park has made it perfectly clear that the jackets are limited and are on a first come first serve basis, which means if you want a specific size you better get there as soon as you can...in my case it would be a ludicrous drive that would mean the "free" jacket would cost me over $60.00 in gas. (I usually don't make my first visit to the park until mid-May.) Fortunately for me I really do not want one, but I feel sorry for anyone who does and has to “work” to get it. I think when people are complaining on here it is more for what they perceive as bad customer service…not the actual jacket itself. As an example, when I was at the park I had a question about the program that nobody in customer service could answer, they were very nice and took my name & phone number and said they would have the person who DID know “get back to me”…after over 3 weeks and no call I finally contacted THEM. I find it VERY ironic that this jacket is for the people they consider V.I.P.‘s…God help the LOWLY customers! I will credit the park for a nice idea that they did not have to do. (I doubt that getting the “free” jacket really made many people get a season pass who wouldn’t have already been buying one anyway.) So once again it was a nice gesture…but in the end, I personally think that having a promotional program gone wrong is even worse than not having one in the first place.

XGatorHead...thanks for taking the time to post the pictures, being that I am in Illinois it is the only way I would ever get a chance to see it like this.

I also kind of like just the white lights at night if only because the tower is brighter. As for this year's red lights at Halloween Haunt... I prefer the purple ones at last year's FearFest The tower at least stood out a bit more instead of being so dark.